(1.) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the storage of flat recording media and particularly to facilitating the safe storage and retrieval of "compact" discs. More specifically, this invention is directed to a container which receives, stores and presents for use upon command flat recording media such as compact discs, video discs, floppy discs and the like. Accordingly, the general objects of the present invention are to provide novel and improved methods and apparatus of such character.
(2) Description of the Prior Art
The storage of flat recording media, the so-called "compact discs" for example, presents previously unsolved problems. There have, to be sure, previously been suggested and/or available numerous devices for use in the storage of flat recording media such as the well known 33 rpm long-playing record. The previously available storage devices, however, were basically designed as pieces of furniture and the recording media, when stored therein, was left in a protective envelope or sleeve. While somewhat inconvenient, the storage of recording media in a sleeve or envelope is nevertheless generally considered to be satisfactory in the stationary, i.e., home or office, environment. In recent years disc-form recording media for audio and video signals has become available which, although sensitive to dust, is not effected by finger marks. These recently introduced disc-form recording media, which are employed in optical playback apparatus, are characterized by both high storage density and high quality of reproduction and may safely be handled without a protective sleeve. Playback apparatus for vehicles which accept these "compact discs" have recently become available and this apparatus is becoming competitive with the widely known sound reproduction systems which accept magnetic tape cassettes.
While the problem is certainly not limited thereto, the high density storage of flat recording media in a manner which permits individual discs to be removed from and returned to the storage container with minimal user attention is particularly important in a motor vehicle installation. Thus, in order to insure that attention is not diverted from the primary function of controlling the vehicle, a compact disc storage system should allow the user to withdraw a disc therefrom and subsequently return that disc to storage without need for careful attention to disc positioning. The desire that minimal attention be required for disc storage and retrieval, however, is to some extent inconsistent with a storage system which provides the requisite protection for the stored media.